


Actions Speak Louder Than Words

by Anonymous



Series: The Little Lamb In Wolf's Clothing 'Verse [3]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Age Play Caregiver Anxiety | Virgil Sanders, Age Play Caregiver Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Age Play Caregiver Logic | Logan Sanders, Age Play Caregiver Morality | Patton Sanders, Age Play Little Deceit | Janus Sanders, Age Regression/De-Aging, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders is a Sweetheart, As many as possible - Freeform, Blood, Blood and Injury, Caretaking, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders is a Sweetheart, Crying, Cuddling & Snuggling, Deceit | Janus Sanders Needs a Hug, Gen, Hugs, Light Angst, Logic | Logan Sanders is a Sweetheart, Minor Injuries, Morality | Patton Sanders is a Sweetheart, Nightmares, Non-Sexual Age Play, Panic Attacks, Pillow & Blanket Forts, Platonic Cuddling, Serious Injuries, Shedding, Sides As Family (Sanders Sides), because you need them, we gonna get you a hug alright
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-11
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-15 22:56:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28696581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: In the aftermath of the, collectively dubbed, 'Incident', Janus was left reeling. The Lights were being nice to him, going against the only system he'd ever known. The lines were now so much blurrier, not everything was so black and white anymore. But did they really mean any of it?Or was it all a lie?-Alternatively, how Janus learns to trust.
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders & Deceit | Janus Sanders, Deceit | Janus Sanders & Logic | Logan Sanders, Deceit | Janus Sanders & Morality | Patton Sanders
Series: The Little Lamb In Wolf's Clothing 'Verse [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2085756
Comments: 70
Kudos: 150
Collections: Anonymous





	1. Janus

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah, ok, this was the hardest chapter to write, because after around 300 words, I had nothing left to add. Somehow, I pulled through with 1,000, so I hope I doesn't seem too obvious that I struggled. I was originally gonna skip this chapter altogether, but it felt necessary, so here we go. 
> 
> Warnings:  
> \- just a quick PSA from me, don't listen to anything Janus says here about age regression. It's completely valid, and it's not a weakness whatsoever, involuntary or otherwise. Please, please love yourselves and each other. 
> 
> Please know that you're all fantastic people, and you deserve great things <3

Janus frowned, shutting and locking the door of his room behind him.  
  
Age regression, they'd called it. A coping mechanism.  
  
He scoffed.  
  
Coping with what? He had no problems, no issues.  
  
No unresolved emotional tension with a certain Purple Side.   
  
Well, ok. Maybe he had _some_ of those things. But he didn't need to _regress_ to cope with them. He was doing just fine. Absolutely fine.  
  
He sat down on his bed, pulling off his bowler hat and capelet, throwing them over his shoulder onto the floor. He was too tired to fold them today. He'd do it tomorrow.  
  
He sighed, eyes avoiding the plate of cookies Patton had left on his desk nearly two days ago. He hadn't touched a single one.  
  
His mind wandered involuntarily back three days prior, reminding him of his evening spent with the others, all of them, listening to them apologise profusely, tears in their eyes. He almost thought they would sink to their knees and beg. In the end, he accepted their apologies, not because he wanted to, but because he never wanted to see Logan crying ever again. Especially over the likes of him.  
  
He picked up the photo frame from his side table, placing it face down. It was the only happy photo the Dark Sides had, and, for some reason, it had ended up in his room after the shift. He used to tell Virgil and Remus he hated it, he looked ridiculous, bundled up in all those blankets. Secretly, he had loved the photo. Even after Virgil left. It was a reminder of happier days, a reminder that he hadn't spent his _whole_ life moping, avoiding everyone in sight.  
  
A reminder that he had once let people close to him.  
  
Now, he couldn't bear to look at it.  
  
The simple truth was, he didn't need any of them. Didn't need Virgil, didn't need any of the other Lights. He was _happy_ , living with Remus down in the Subconscious.  
  
He was... happy.  
  
But, of course, all of that had to change. Their rooms moved up to the main part of Thomas' mind, where the Light Sides resided. Where he'd see them everyday, where they'd see _him_ everyday.  
  
And, suddenly, it got a lot harder to hide away.  
  
There was Patton in the kitchen, Roman in the Common Room, Virgil in the hallway, Logan by the stairs.  
  
There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, when his... _weakness_ was on show.  
  
Janus eyed the little yellow teddy bear sitting on his bed. It was a combined effort between the twins. For the first time, those two had sat together and _talked,_ hashed out their issues, come to some terms. They'd rekindled their brotherhood because of Janus.  
  
Perhaps he was good for _some_ things, then.  
  
If asked, Janus wouldn't admit it, but the bear was special to him. He was given it only days ago, as an apology present, of sorts, Roman had said.  
  
It was his favourite shade of yellow, reminiscent of daffodils fields, the embodiment of happiness. Both eyes were simple black buttons, courtesy of Remus, he guessed, Roman would've gone with something much more extravagant.  
Lastly, Remus had walked over to the microwave and thrown it in there, much to Janus' shock. He let it run for a minute or so, before pulling it out, and handing it back to Janus. A delicious heat had coursed through him, and the air was filled with the scent of lavender.  
Roman had laughed at the look of sheer bliss on his face. It was microwaveable, he had explained. Janus was cold-blooded, and it was a source of heat.  
  
Janus pretended he hadn't cried at that.  
  
But it was weird. He'd expected it from Remus, his long time best friend and only companion down in the Subconscious. He'd expected the apology, the affection. But not from the others. Hadn't expected a single thing, not even an apology. Those ones from the Imagination were only to get rid of Scary La- _Mara,_ after all.  
  
He hasn't expected any of it, least of all _presents._  
  
So many opportunities presented themselves where they could break him, destroy him, make sure he never interacted with Thomas again. Erase his influence.  
  
But they didn't.  
  
And he couldn't understand why.  
  
He was weak. He was flawed. He wasn't good enough. He was different.  
  
He was wrong.  
  
And the fact that he had to- to _regress,_ descend into a more childlike state of mind, proved that.  
  
Janus resisted the urge to pull his bear into a hug. He settled for reaching out, fingers barely brushing the soft fur.  
  
So he never understood why Patton smiled at him when he could finally bring himself to eat breakfast with the others.  
  
Or why Logan always gave him the barest nod of acknowledgement whenever he entered a room.  
  
Why Roman would constantly invite him to movie nights to have Disney movie marathons, offering to watch The Jungle Book, not because it was his favourite, but because it was Janus'.  
  
Or why Virgil would sit next to him on the couch casually, seemingly without a second thought (though Janus knew better), after a whole year of avoiding him, hissing at him, and cursing his very existence.  
  
He didn't understand.  
  
The urge struck again, tugging insistently at his heart. The bear was practically calling out to him, asking him to pick it up, cuddle it. He ignored it, instead.  
  
They were _supposed_ to hate him. Shun him, resent him. They were good, he was bad. They were light, he was dark. It was just how it worked.  
  
But they didn't hate him. And it didn't make any sense.

It was almost as if he could feel the bear's gaze boring into him. Janus sighed, taking it and burying it under his large collection of pillows. Out of sight, out of mind.  
  
Always the best way to solve your problems.  
  
He would remain obstinate, he decided. Regardless of Patton's smiles, Logan's nods, Roman's invitations and Virgil's (supposed) trust, he would stay professional, distant. Giving away polite smiles, quick greetings and nothing more.  
  
Because they were forgetting one thing.  
  
He didn't trust _them_. 


	2. Patton

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He didn't trust them, that much was clear.
> 
> But at the same time, Patton could feel a certain level of internal conflict, when it came to Janus. On one hand, he was cautious around the others, but Patton saw the way his eyes lit up when Roman and Remus presented that little bear to him. And he wanted to see that look on Janus' face much, much more. 
> 
> Perhaps, that was what prompted him to approach Janus in the kitchen that afternoon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Patton's chapter, yay! I hope this makes up for the fact that Patton wasn't in the first fic as much, I really couldn't find a place for him to fit. But he will be included in future, so no need to worry. 
> 
> Warnings:   
> \- minor description of an injury (why do I like hurting Janus so much) 
> 
> That's it, I think. Let me know if I've missed anything.

Contrary to popular belief, Patton wasn't oblivious _all_ the time. He represented emotions and, though he made a lot of mistakes, that came with a great deal of emotional sensitivity.   
  
So, it broke his heart into a billion itty bitty pieces when he caught sight of the wary, almost nervous looks Janus gave in return to his smiles, or the way he would subtly shuffle away if Roman sat too close to him on the couch.   
  
He didn't trust them, that much was clear.   
  
But at the same time, Patton could feel a certain level of internal conflict, when it came to Janus. On one hand, he was cautious around the others, but Patton saw the way his eyes lit up when Roman and Remus presented that little bear to him. And he wanted to see that look on Janus' face much, much more.   
  
Perhaps, that was what prompted him to approach Janus in the kitchen that afternoon.   
  
The Side had been standing by the stove, idly sautéing something in a pan. The aroma of fried vegetables was floating through the air. Patton walked in, making himself known as loudly as possible as not to startle Janus with his presence. He noticed the Side's shoulders tense, but relax once he'd come into view.   
  
"Ah, Patton," Janus greeted in his silky smooth voice. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"   
  
Patton hated the thin, false smile that settled over his features, like a mask he'd worn many times before. It was fine, at first glance. That was the scary part. To anyone who didn't look close enough, Janus was fine. There was nothing wrong.   
  
But, to those who cared to look, there was a horrible, forced quality to that smile, it was like the kind of smile one would wear when speaking to a co-worker they hated, but needed to tolerate in order to keep their job. Was that really how they'd made Janus feel?   
  
Patton put on his own smile, eyes flicking to the pan on the stove.   
  
"Hiya, kid- Janus! What're you cooking?"   
  
Janus blinked, eyes staring down at the pan as if he'd forgotten it was there. The smile disappeared for a moment.   
  
"Oh, yes, of course. I was just making an omelette for lunch. It's only something very simple, neither me nor Remus really know how to cook, so it was mostly Virgil who handled it. Well, that is, before he came here."   
  
Janus said the words with a little chuckle, as if it was something to be laughed about. Patton wasn't so sure.   
  
"You know," he began, cautiously. " You don't have to do it all by yourself. I can help, if you want. I cook lunch for all the others," he purposefully left out the fact that Virgil did too. That wasn't something Janus needed to hear as of right now.   
  
Patton didn't think it was possible, but the smile became even more forced. It seemed like Janus was now barely refraining from either screaming in his face or bursting into tears, neither of which were the desired outcome. He needed to backtrack, and fast.   
  
"But, you're doing such a good job already!" He rushed to amend. "It really looks like you know what you're doing in here, and you seem to be aware of where everything is, so I can just-"   
  
Janus yelped, jumping back from the stove, suddenly. He cradled his wrist, eyes becoming glossy.   
  
Oh. Oh no.   
  
At some point during their conversation (could it really be called that?) Janus' right wrist had been inching closer and closer to the, no doubt scorching, rim of the pan. Eventually, as Patton went off on his spiel, his wrist had come to rest on the edge, burning it quite badly.   
  
And it was all his fault.   
  
Patton cupped a hand over his mouth, tears springing to his own eyes. He'd come in hopes of repairing the burning bridge of their relationship, but had only ended up setting more fires. Gosh, he was so bad, he should never be allowed near Janus again because Janus was hurt now and it was his fault and-   
  
Ok. Ok, now was not the time to drown in self pity. He caused this, but he needed to help.   
  
There were tears running freely down Janus' cheeks now, a testament to how painful the burn must be. Even when they were kids, and the divide between Light and Dark hadn't been so defined, Patton had never seen Janus cry over an injury, not once.   
  
He advanced forwards slowly, both hands out in front of him.   
  
"Janus? Can I look at it, please? I just want to see it, I won't touch, I promise."   
  
The Side's eyes narrowed as he searched Patton for any signs of dishonesty. Patton kept both his hands in Janus' line of sight and tried to make his expression as open as possible.   
  
The tension was tangible.   
  
Whatever Janus was looking for, he didn't seem to find it, because he slowly stretched his hand out within Patton's reach. His eyes held a warning, though, telling Patton that one wrong move could cost him dearly.   
  
Patton took Janus' hand in his own gently, turning it over to survey the damage. He tried not to let his eyes widen at the red, blistered skin that greeted him.   
  
The smell of burning filled the air, and Patton used his free hand to switch off the heat and move the pan to a different stove burner. He then pulled Janus over to the tap, allowing cold water to wash over the affected area, heart breaking when Janus whimpered quietly.   
  
It was then, that Patton realised the side was still waiting for a verdict. He looked Janus in the eye, doing nothing to hide the worry he was feeling. There was no way he could lie to Janus, not when he was so vulnerable. He turned off the tap, inspecting the burn closer this time.   
  
"Oh, sweetheart," he breathed, pet name slipping out without permission. "That's quite a nasty burn. Would you let me bandage it?"   
  
Janus nodded slowly, biting his trembling lip as if he was trying to quell his tears. Upon seeing this, Patton placed a hesitant hand on his left cheek, silently asking for consent. When Janus didn't pull away, he rubbed a thumb over the scales.   
  
"It's alright to cry, Janus," he said. It was something he should've made clear to the side, to all of the sides, years ago.   
  
Janus began to sob at that, letting loose all the tears and whimpers he had been holding back. Patton watched, heart aching as the Side broke down completely.   
  
He took Janus' other hand, leading him quietly out of the kitchen and over to the couch in the Common Room. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Virgil watching from the doorway, and gave him a warning look. Thankfully, the anxious side got the message, turning and leaving without a word.   
  
With a flick of his wrist, Patton summoned bandages from the bathroom cabinet. He held his hand out, palm facing upwards, so that Janus could place his wrist in it. Janus' eyes darted from his face to his upturned palm, before he slowly gave Patton his wrist again with a silent sniffle.   
  
And not a single word.   
  
He'd been silent for nearly five minutes now, ever since he'd burned himself...   
  
_Oh_.   
  
Janus had regressed. Patton panicked internally. Why hadn't he said anything? Maybe he was more hurt than he originally thought? Should he call Remus? Should he call Virgil back? He wasn't equipped to deal with this situation!   
  
What ended up coming out of his mouth was,   
"You ok, sweetie?"   
  
Nice move, Patton. Real smart.   
  
Janus nodded his head shyly, avoiding Patton's eyes.   
  
"Little," he whispered.   
  
Patton decided to press further tentatively.   
"Do you want me to get Remus or Virgil?"   
  
To his surprise, Janus shook his head.   
"S'ok. Just you."   
  
Patton only nodded, not trusting himself to speak. Janus felt safe enough with him to be taken care of. Perhaps, he hadn't ruined everything. Perhaps, there was some hope for him after all.   
  
He focussed his attention back on Janus' wrist, willing tears away from his eyes. He could deal with his own emotions later. Janus was counting on him.   
  
Patton placed Janus' wrist on his knee and opened the pack of bandages. He wrapped Janus' wrist firmly, but loose enough to not rub the burn too hard. He finished off by tying a double knot with the ends.   
  
"There we go, kiddo! All done!" He said, feigning cheerfulness. Janus giggled, still not looking up from his lap.

Oh, wowee. That was the most adorable sound Patton had ever heard.   
  
Before he could stop himself, he asked,   
"Can I give you a hug, Janus?"   
  
Janus nodded timidly, allowing Patton to shuffle closer and envelope him in an embrace. He laid his head on Patton's shoulder.   
  
"Thank you, PatPat," he whispered softly.   
  
Patton only held him closer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that was interesting to write. I hope my Patton was in character. He's the one I relate to the most, but somehow, he's the hardest for me to write. 
> 
> Enjoy your day, everyone!


	3. Logan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As he crept past Roman's door, it became evident that he was wrong. A thin beam of light was slipping underneath the main door, as if the lights in the Commons were still on. Logan knew for a fact that Virgil had turned them off before he left, so who was awake at this hour?
> 
> His question was answered when he came upon a small bundle of yellow blankets sitting on the couch next to an abandoned bowler hat and capelet, as he walked towards the kitchen. 
> 
> Janus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I will admit, this has gone from being a fic with an actual plot to just mindless fluff, but, well, we all know I have no control over what I write. 
> 
> I do think my characterization of Logan is pretty good though. If not, feel free to give me a reality check in the comments. 
> 
> Warnings:  
> \- Crying
> 
> I think that's it, but if not, let me know.

Logan yawned, squinting at the time in the corner of his laptop.  
  
Three thirty am. Wonderful.  
  
And he was only halfway through his work. Time for another cup of coffee then. He stood up from his chair, hand darting out to grab the edge of his desk when he was hit with a dizzy spell.  
  
Perhaps he should've listened to Patton about pulling multiple all-nighters in a row...  
  
Well, too late now. He grabbed his cup from where it sat by the lamp.  
  
He pulled his glasses off, rubbing his tired eyes before opening his door and walking into the silent hallway. It was so late, not even Virgil was awake anymore, judging by the eerie silence and lack of light under his door. Though, there was no way to know for sure, Virgil was also notorious for sitting in the darkness, alone, for several hours at a time. He called them his "emo brooding hours", whatever that meant.  
  
Anyway. Coffee.

Logan started down the hallway, being extra careful at Patton's door - the Side left his door ever so slightly ajar, in case "one of his kiddos needed him". They never did, and Logan had said as much, but Patton had merely shrugged. Apparently it was "the thought that counted".  
  
Logan would never understand sentimentality.  
  
As he crept past Roman's door, it became evident that he was wrong. A thin beam of light was slipping underneath the main door, as if the lights in the Commons were still on. Logan knew for a fact that Virgil had turned them off before he left, so who was awake at this hour?  
  
His question was answered when he came upon a small bundle of yellow blankets sitting on the couch next to an abandoned bowler hat and capelet, as he walked towards the kitchen.   
  
Janus.  
  
There were quiet, almost inaudible whimpers being emitted from said bundle, and if the Common Room wasn't completely silent otherwise, Logan would not have heard them. Keeping his eyes on the couch, Logan set his coffee cup down on the kitchen counter, before heading over, unfamiliar feeling twisting in his gut.  
  
It felt strangely reminiscent to the emotion from a few days ago, when saltwater had begun leaking from his eyes.  
  
"Janus?" Logan asked carefully. "What are you doing awake?"  
  
The bundle flinched, then a head popped out from the top reluctantly.  
  
"Ree's gone to the 'magi- the magin-"  
  
"The Imagination," Logan corrected gently. It was now fairly clear it wasn't Big Janus he was talking to.  
  
"Yeah, over there, and n-now I's all alone and 's really scary!"  
  
Logan bit his lip, resisting the urge to correct Janus' grammar. The last thing he needed was for the Little to get more upset. He opened his mouth to speak, when Janus beat him to it.  
  
"W-why're _you_ awake?" He asked quietly.  
  
Logan contemplated lying, but decided against it. Little or not, Janus could sense when people were dishonest. And he had already destroyed enough of Janus' trust as it were.  
  
"I was working late," he replied. "There are still some things I need to finish to keep up with my schedule, so I came to get a cup of coffee. Now, you answer _my_ question, little one. Don't think I didn't notice you changing the subject."  
  
Janus' cheeks tinted red, and he avoided Logan's gaze.  
"Doesn't matter," he mumbled.  
  
Logan decided not to press any further. He got up from the couch slowly, vision blanking for a second.  
  
Maybe he s _hould_ get some sleep.  
  
He steadied himself, then continued on his course to the kitchen.  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
Logan paused, still facing away from the couch. Janus' voice sounded panicked, desperate.  
  
As if he didn't want Logan to leave.  
  
"I am returning to the kitchen to retrieve my coffee cup. Then I am going back to my room," he responded neutrally.  
  
There was silence, and Logan almost doubted his earlier observation. Then,  
  
"C-can I come with you?"  
  
Logan turned back around to face the Side. Janus had hidden himself in the blankets again, but Logan could feel his gaze trained upon him. He mustered his softest voice, as not to scare the Little.  
  
"I'm not the most," he chose his words carefully. "Child friendly of Sides."   
  
The bundle deflated, and Logan rushed to amend his statement.  
  
"But you may, if you so desire."  
  
The blankets shifted, and Janus peeked out again, eyes gleaming with hope.  
  
"Really?" He asked, as if he was worried Logan would change his mind.  
  
His tone tugged at heartstrings Logan didn't know he had.  
  
"Of course, little one. I would really appreciate your company."  
  
Janus seemed satisfied by that answer, and lifted himself, blankets and all, off the couch.  
  
Well, _tried_ to, at the very least.  
  
The instant he was standing, all the blankets fell, pooling at his feet. Janus stared at them helplessly, lip trembling. Logan's eyes widened.  
  
Uh oh. Feelings.  
  
Before he knew what he was doing, Logan strode forwards, taking one of the larger blankets and tying it around Janus' shoulders like a cape. He then took the rest of them himself, giving Janus a small smile.  
  
"Is that better?"  
  
Janus nodded shyly. Logan left the Common Room, Janus in tow, coffee cup long forgotten.

-  
  
"We have to be quiet, alright, little one? Everyone else is asleep."  
  
Janus nodded seriously.  
"Ok Logie. Gots to be _super_ quiet, 'cause it's s'eepy time for eve'yone." He whispered.  
  
Logan nodded in return, steadfastly ignoring the way his heart twisted at the, admittedly adorable, reply.  
  
He pushed open his dark blue door, allowing Janus in before him. The Side shuffled his feet, standing awkwardly in the middle of the room. Logan's lips twitched upwards.  
  
"You may sit down, Janus." He said.

Janus looked relieved at receiving permission, and sat down at the edge of Logan's bed, watching him curiously as he took at seat at his desk chair.  
  
"What doing?" He asked, head cocked to the side in confusion.  
  
"As I mentioned earlier, I have work to finish." He gestured vaguely at his bed. "You may sleep in my bed if you wish, Janus. It is getting late."  
  
Janus' eyes widened at the mention of sleeping.  
  
"N-no, it's ok. I no need s'eep." He sounded... afraid.  
  
Afraid? What was there to be afraid-

Then it clicked. The avoidance of Logan's question, the desperation when Logan tried to leave, even his earlier comment about Remus in the Imagination. As far as Logan was aware, Remus hadn't even gone to the Imagination that day. He had been in the Commons with all the others.  
  
"Did you have a nightmare, little one?" Logan asked, as gently as possible.  
  
Janus froze. His eyes filled, once again, with tears.  
  
"Y-yeah..." He admitted quietly, staring down at his lap.  
  
Logan could see a tear fall.  
  
He rose from his desk chair, coming to sit by Janus on the bed. He hesitated, then placed a hand on the Side's shoulder.  
  
"Would you like to talk about it?"  
  
Janus shook his head, shoulders trembling with silent sobs.  
  
Well, Logan was at a loss. What should he do now?  
  
He couldn't help but think nearly any other Side would be more appropriate in this situation. Ideally Remus or Virgil, perhaps even Patton would do a better job than him. He'd noticed Janus' growing comfort around Patton. He no longer cringed at the Side's smiles, instead smiling back, albeit hesitantly. But progress was progress.  
  
 _Offer him a hug,_ his mind whispered, sounding suspicously like the Moral Side himself. And, for once, he decided to listen.  
  
"W-would you like a hug, Janus?" Logan hated how robotic his voice sounded. But Janus didn't seem to notice, only accepted the offer wholeheartedly, throwing his arms around Logan and sobbing into his chest. He'd shuffled close enough to almost sit in Logan's lap now.

Logan willed himself not to stiffen. He tentatively wrapped his arms around Janus, holding him gently. The Side shifted himself into Logan's lap fully, tightening his grip.  
  
Ok. This was fine.  
  
Logan adjusted, shuffling so that his back was against the headboard in order to hold Janus more comfortably. The Side showed no signs of having registered the movement, simply continuing to sob.  
  
Eventually, Janus tired himself out, falling completely limp against Logan's chest. His breathing stuttered occasionally, and Logan merely rubbed a hand over his back, hushing him softly. At some point, Janus' fingers had migrated to his mouth, and Logan cringed at the unsanitary habit. He opted to ignore it, though, because Janus was upset and deserved the comfort.

After double, triple checking Janus was asleep, Logan laid down, pulling the Side with him. He shimmied them both under the blankets, sighing and shutting his eyes.  
  
Perhaps work could wait until morning. 

Well, _later_ in the morning. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope that was at least decent. 
> 
> Have a wonderful day!


	4. Roman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roman's eyes flicked up from his page as Janus yawned again.
> 
> The two had been working on a rehearsal schedule for Thomas, who had been cast in yet another musical as a main character, despite Virgil's insistence that the judges hated him. They partnered up often for this reason, being the only avid actors of the group. But, Roman always got the distinct feeling that Janus didn't like their partnership, and only showed up out of obligation. He tried not to let that hurt too much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is slightly shorter than the others. Yeah... I started off strong, then just kinda lost it at the end. I hope the quality isn't too bad, that's the one worry I always have with writing. 
> 
> Warnings:  
> \- frustrated ranting (no one is angry or anything, but it's there)  
> \- crying 
> 
> I think that's it. Let me know if I've missed anything.

Roman's eyes flicked up from his page as Janus yawned again.  
  
The two had been working on a rehearsal schedule for Thomas, who had been cast in yet another musical as a main character, despite Virgil's insistence that the judges hated him. They partnered up often for this reason, being the only avid actors of the group. But, Roman always got the distinct feeling that Janus didn't like their partnership, and only showed up out of obligation. He tried not to let that hurt too much.  
  
Logan had been there as well, before retiring to bed a short while ago, claiming that he didn't want to ruin his circus system or whatever. In all honesty, Roman didn't understand half the words that came out of Logan's mouth, but he was sure that Logan's circular collison (what did that even mean?) had already been ruined, judging by how irregular his sleep patterns were.  
  
Circuitry divisions aside, it was only him and Janus now. Had been for a few hours. But, as he watched Janus let out yet another yawn, he was sure that wouldn't be the case for very long.  
  
Janus' eyes were half lidded, and he was slumped over Roman's desk, chin propped on his hand. It was so late at night that he'd swapped out his usual get-up for a yellow t-shirt and grey sweats. His feet were bare, allowing Roman to see little clusters of scales scattered over them.  
  
He'd never seen Janus dressed so informally in his life. Well, there was that time after the Incident, but that didn't count! Virgil had dressed him.  
Seeing Janus like this made him wonder what other outfits the snake had in his closet. Surely they couldn't all be capelets and bowler hats and really ugly tunics, right? Maybe he could ask Remus...  
  
A quiet snore interrupted his thoughts.  
  
"Janus?"  
  
The Side didn't stir.  
  
"Snake n' Bake? You with me?"  
  
Janus' head snapped up suddenly, and he glanced around the room. His eyes came to rest on Roman, and he finally seemed to register where he was. Roman snorted in amusement.  
  
"You tired, Snakey?"  
  
To his surprise, Janus shook his head vehemently.  
  
"No, I'm alright."  
  
He resumed he position from a few hours earlier, standing up and looking at the notebook over Roman's shoulder. He yawned once again, and his blink lasted far too long. Roman raised an eyebrow, most of the amusement gone from his expression now.  
  
"You sure? You can go to bed if you want, I can-"  
  
"No!"  
  
Roman startled at the shout. Janus covered his mouth.  
  
"I-I mean- no, it's fine. I should help you finish it. I'm not that tired anyway." Even as he said the words, his eyelids drooped and he looked ready to collapse.  
  
Roman narrowed his eyes.  
"Ok, cut the act. You're clearly exhausted. What're you doing?"  
  
Janus glared at him.  
"I'm fine, Roman. You don't need to baby me."  
  
"Well, clearly I do!" Roman erupted. "You've been yawning non stop for the past hour, and your eyelids are so far down they're practically shut! Look, I get that you hate me or whatever, you don't have to force yourself to sit here and tolerate my presence. I don't know what your problem is, but I can assure you now, you have no moral obligation to help me finish this. You can go to bed!"  
  
It was only then, that Roman realised Janus hadn't shouted anything back at him.  
  
"...Janus?"  
  
There was a quiet sniff, and Janus wiped his eyes. He covered his face with his hands, turning away from Roman.  
  
"'M sorry, Ro-Ro..." He whimpered quietly.  
  
Roman's brain let out a string of curses that would even scandalize Remus.   
  
"Jan-bear?"  
  
Roman rose from his chair, walking around so that he was facing Janus again. Janus, sensing the movement, curled in on himself a little. It broke Roman's heart.  
  
"Jay, I'm sorry."  
  
Janus didn't respond. Roman felt like he'd been punched in the gut.  
  
"Can you look at me, sweetheart?"  
  
Janus pulled his hands down a little, so that only his teary eyes were visible. Roman made a soft cooing noise, taking Janus gently by the shoulders and steering him to sit in the chair Roman had been sitting in previously. He then sat in the other one, dragging it so that it was right next to Janus. With a snap of his fingers, he summoned Janus' little yellow bear, easing the Side's hands away from his face and placing the bear in them. He mentally cheered as Janus cuddled the bear close, burying his face in its fur.  
  
"You wanna tell me why you won't sleep? You're clearly very sleepy," Roman asked.  
  
Janus mumbled something into the bear.  
  
"I'm sorry, darling, I didn't catch that."  
  
"...wanna stay with you, Ro-Ro."  
  
Roman barely stopped tears from filling his own eyes. Janus _wanted_ to spend time with him?  
  
He leaned over, shutting his notebook with a thump, and closing down his laptop. Janus watched him curiously, peeking out from behind the bear's head.  
  
"What doing?"  
  
Roman smiled at him gently.  
"I wanna spend time with my favourite little noodle. And we certainly aren't going to _work_ the whole time."  
  
He snapped his fingers, and the room shifted to accomodate a large TV and a grand blanket fort in front of it. Janus gasped, eyes sparkling. Roman chuckled.  
  
"Cool, huh?"

He took Janus by the hand, leading him over to the fort. He pulled a yellow blanket out of the stack by the entrance, draping over Janus' shoulders. The Side practically purred.  
  
"...warm," he hummed, eyes slipping shut in content.  
  
Roman stifled a laugh, sitting down and pulling Janus to sit beside him.  
  
"That's because it's electric, sweetie."

Janus didn't seem to hear him, happy to just cuddle up beside Roman and revel in this new source of heat.  
  
"What movie do you want watch, Jan-bear?"  
  
Janus buried his face in Roman's shoulder.  
"Nemo," he whispered shyly.  
  
Roman snapped his fingers once again, and the TV screen flickered to life, playing the requested movie. He made sure to skip the first part, though; he knew Janus didn't like the Barracuda.  
  
Janus shifted a little bit, wrapping his arms around Roman's waist, watching the movie with half-lidded eyes. Occasionally, he spoke up, whispering the names of the fish that appeared on screen, or mouthing the lines alongside the characters.  
  
"Jus' keep swimmin', jus' keep swimmin'," he mumbled tiredly.  
  
Roman bit his lip, resisting the urge to coo. Janus was almost asleep, and there was no way he was going to disrupt that.  
  
As the movie drew to a close, Janus was fast asleep, so Roman switched off the TV with a wave of his hand. He extracted himself from Janus' grip, pulling the electric blanket from the Side's shoulders - Remus would kill him a thousand times over if Janus got hurt on his watch - and replacing it with a regular one. Janus whined, hands grasping at where Roman's torso had been. His eyelids fluttered. Roman quickly replaced himself with Janus' bear, before stepping quietly out of the blanket fort to get ready for bed, when,  
  
"Ro?"  
  
Roman turned back around, flashing Janus a soft smile.  
"Yeah, pumpkin?"  
  
Even in the semi-darkness, Roman could see Janus' little pout. He patted the space beside him.  
  
"Stay here," he said stubbornly.  
  
Roman rolled his eyes playfully.  
"Gosh, so demanding."  
  
He returned to the the blanket fort climbing in beside Janus, the Side immediately curling up in his arms. He felt Janus breathe a sigh into the crook of his neck.  
  
"Nigh' nigh', Ro..." he whispered, already halfway back to sleep.  
  
Roman hesitated, then pressed a little kiss to Janus' hair.  
  
"Night, Jan-bear," 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you hadn't guessed, the term Roman kept messing up was "circadian rhythm" 
> 
> I sincerely hope that was funny - I don't have the best sense of humor. 
> 
> Have a wonderful day!


	5. Virgil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Virgil growled under his breath, pulling his hood up and turning the volume even higher. If Patton were here, he would definitely be scolded for ruining his hearing, but Virgil didn't care, because Patton wasn't here right now, and they were imaginary, real world problems didn't apply.
> 
> So there.
> 
> The knocking sounded again. Louder still, but more frantic now.
> 
> Ok, did this person not get the idea of-
> 
> "Virge!"
> 
> Virgil was off his bed in an instant, wrenching open the door just in time to catch Janus, who'd fallen through as soon as the door wasn't supporting his weight anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Virgil's chapter. The penultimate one! I was supposed to have this out yesterday, but couldn't find a spare moment. 
> 
> Warnings:  
> \- panic attack  
> \- This is slightly more angsty than the last ones (Yeah, I'm kinda out to hit y'all in the feels today... sorry)
> 
> Also, as I mentioned in my other fic, I've never had a panic attack before. Please don't hesitate to correct me if I've misrepresented them in anyway. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

There was a knock at the door.

Virgil ignored it, turning the volume of his music up. He wasn't particularly in the mood to talk with anyone.  
  
Tap. Tap.  
  
Louder, this time.  
  
Virgil growled under his breath, pulling his hood up and turning the volume even higher. If Patton were here, he would definitely be scolded for ruining his hearing, but Virgil didn't care, because Patton _wasn't_ here right now, and they were imaginary, real world problems didn't apply.  
  
So there.  
  
The knocking sounded again. Louder still, but more frantic now.  
  
Ok, did this person not get the idea of-  
  
"Virge!"  
  
Virgil was off his bed in an instant, wrenching open the door just in time to catch Janus, who'd fallen through as soon as the door wasn't supporting his weight anymore.  
  
"Janus? Janus what's going on?" He asked, feeling his breathing speed up.  
  
Janus didn't answer, because his own breaths were way too fast to even think about trying to force a sentence out of his mouth. He clawed at the back of Virgil's hoodie desperately. There were tears flowing down his cheeks, he seemed to be working himself into more of a panic every second.  
  
Virgil took several deep breaths, allowing himself to calm down before directing his attention to Janus.  
  
"Janus, Jan, I need you to breathe, ok? Breathe for me."  
  
Janus didn't seem to hear him, clutching Virgil's hoodie in a white-knuckled grip.  
  
"Vee-Vee, help me!" He cried between gasps. His breaths got even shallower, something Virgil didn't think was possible.  
  
The vice-like grip returned to his own chest, threatening to cut off his oxygen supply. He forced himself to calm down.  
  
He couldn't panic. Not now.  
  
Slowly, he shuffled backwards, lowering himself and Janus onto his bed. He sat so that his legs with dangled off the bed, and Janus was sitting sideways across his lap, head resting on his shoulder. He could hear Janus' high pitched gasps now, right up close to his ear.  
  
"Janus, deep breaths."  
  
He took Janus' hand, placing it on his own chest.  
  
"Here. Copy me, in and out..."  
  
Janus finally seemed to be registering what he was saying, breath stuttering as he tried to suck in larger lungfuls of air. He managed about one and a half, before the panic took control again.  
  
"Make it stop, Vee! Make it stop!" Janus sobbed.  
  
Virgil's heart was as good as broken.  
  
"I know, I know, Jan. But I need you to breathe with me. Look, we'll count together. In for four..."  
  
Virgil placed his own palm over Janus' on his chest, taking a deep breath and counting to four. Janus copied him as best he could, taking in a shaky breath as Virgil counted.  
  
"One... two-"  
  
Janus exhaled harshly, gasping.  
  
"'M sorry Vee, 'm sorry!"  
  
Virgil was getting worried now. This panic attack was way worse than any other he'd seen Janus have. Whatever caused it must've been pretty bad.  
  
"It's ok, Jan. Let's try again." He tried to keep the tremors out of his voice.  
  
Virgil began inhaling again, counting as he did. Janus followed suit.

"One... two... three... four-"  
  
Janus just managed, letting go of the breath sharply.  
  
"There we go, good boy. That was good!" Virgil praised, before Janus could work himself up again. "Ok, now let's try holding for seven too."  
  
He began counting once more. Janus started sucking in a deep breath obediently.  
  
"One... two... three... four..."  
  
Janus held it, puffing out his cheeks adorably.  
  
"One... two... three... four... five... six... seven- hold!" Virgil said, just as Janus was about to let go.  
  
Janus met his gaze, alarmed, but didn't let go of the breath he was holding. Virgil rubbed his back soothingly.  
  
"Ok, now let go of it slowly for eight seconds."  
  
He began to count.  
  
"One... two..."  
  
He could hear Janus letting out his breath carefully, making sure not to go too fast. The worst of it was over, thankfully, and Virgil was happy to see some colour returning to Janus' previously ashen complexion.  
  
"Three... four... five..."  
  
Janus had calmed considerably. There was, occasionally, a tear or two that fell, but other than that, and his shuddering breaths, there was no evidence of his crying.  
  
"Six... seven..."  
  
Janus leaned his head on Virgil's chest, placing his head right over his heart. He was still breathing out slowly, and his eyes fell shut as he quietly focussed on Virgil's heartbeat. Virgil fought back a smile.  
  
"Eight!"  
  
The last of Janus' breath was gone, and he smiled up at Virgil tiredly.  
  
"Thank you, Vee," he murmured, yawning.  
  
"You're welcome, Jan," Virgil smiled, chuckling at Janus' yawn. "You tired, buddy?"  
  
Janus hummed, nuzzling his face into Virgil's neck.  
  
There was silence for a few minutes, and Virgil was ready to assume Janus was asleep when,  
  
"'M scared, Vee..." Janus whispered in his ear.  
  
Virgil's heart stuttered at those words. He pulled Janus closer. He had intended to talk to Janus after he took a nap, but now was as good a time as any, he supposed.  
  
"Must've been pretty scary, huh, panicking like that?" He cooed.  
  
Janus nodded into his shoulder.  
  
"Can you tell Vee what's going on?"  
  
The exchange was painfully reminiscent of before, when Janus and Remus would sneak into his room in the dead of night, the former in tears, usually due to a nightmare.  
  
He and Remus would stay up for the rest of the night, singing, talking, dancing, doing anything within their power to make Janus smile, if only for a little bit. Every time, he would pull Remus and Janus into his bed, under the covers, and ask,  
  
 _"Can you tell Vee what's going on?"_   
  
It always made him feel a bit silly, referring to himself in the third person, but it was worth it to see the little sleepy smile that crossed Janus' face.  
  
Virgil thought those days were long gone.  
  
Janus muffled a sob in his hoodie, and Virgil's breath hitched.  
  
"Jan?"  
  
"Was playin' wif Remus," he whimpered. "A-and he... h-he-" Janus cut himself off with a hiccup.  
  
Virgil's face darkened.  
  
"He what?" He growled.  
  
Janus flinched, and Virgil hurried to soften his tone.  
  
"No, no, baby, I'm not mad at you. What did Remus do, Jan?"

Janus sniffled, wiping his tears on Virgil's hoodie. He tried not to grimace.  
  
"H-he called me-"  
  
Virgil waited, expecting the worst. Nothing came.  
  
"Jan?"  
  
Janus shook his head vehemently.  
  
"C-can't say it..."  
  
If Virgil was mad before, he was fuming now.  
  
"Ok, bud. You want to write it down for me instead? Can you do that?"  
  
Janus nodded shakily. Virgil summoned the pad of paper and pen from his desk, passing them over the Janus. The Side took them in his trembling hands, writing down two words.  
  
 _Little snake._  
  
Now Virgil was confused. The words didn't seem particularly malicious, and there didn't seem to be a teasing tone to them (though Virgil would have to know the context to know for sure), so why...?  
  
Then it hit him.

_"What's the matter, little snake? Cat got your tongue?"_

The guilt was crushing. 

Virgil squeezed Janus tighter, holding him to his chest. He'd never wished more that he could take that pain away, but he couldnt. It was seared in Janus' brain, the damage was irreversible. It could only heal with time.  
  
Janus shifted, squeezing Virgil back just as tightly. He could feel the Side's tears soaking his hoodie.  
  
"I'm so sorry, Jan," Virgil himself was crying now. "So, so sorry, sweetheart. We should've tried harder, should've kept you safe."  
  
There were hot tears trailing down his cheeks, dripping into Janus' hair.  
  
"'S ok, Vee," Janus' voice was hoarse from crying. "'S ok. You came back for me."  
  
Virgil placed a hand on the back of Janus' head, tucking it into his chest. They both sat there, sobbing in each other's embrace.  
  
"And we always will, baby."  
  
Virgil knew they had to talk about this eventually. The Incident hadn't been the most appealing topic of conversation; it was avoided like the Plague, in fact. But, as much as they all wanted to erase it from their minds, forget it happened at all, Janus was hurt. Virgil was sure he wasn't the only one who could hear his screams and cries in the middle of the night.  
  
But that was for later. He and Janus could explain the situation, ease everyone's worries, assure Remus that he hadn't ruined everything, as he, no doubt, would be beating himself up over. They could do it all later.  
  
Tomorrow.  
  
Janus was back, they got him back.  
  
And they wouldn't let him get hurt again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, I am not responsible for any broken hearts suffered from reading this. 
> 
> Have a spectacular day! <3


	6. FamILY (pt. 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus, for once in his life, wished he was more organised.
> 
> This could've been prevented if he'd just bothered to keep a calendar. But no, he just had to go be the way he was and not care about any kind of consistency or organisation.
> 
> Sometimes, he wished he was more like Logan. Because Logan certainly wouldn't be stood in front of his best friend's door, banging on it incessantly and threatening to break it down if he didn't open up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, uh, slight change of plans. This chapter got a little longer than I'd expected, and I still have loads I would like to write, so I split it in two. This wasn't supposed to be out until tomorrow, so... surprise? 
> 
> Warnings:   
> \- angst  
> \- gory imagery  
> \- blood mention (indirectly - I never actually use the word blood, but it's there) 
> 
> I think that's all, but let me know if not.

Remus, for once in his life, wished he was more organised.   
  
This could've been prevented if he'd just bothered to keep a calendar. But no, he just _had_ to go be the way he was and not care about any kind of consistency or organisation.   
  
Sometimes, he wished he was more like Logan. Because Logan certainly wouldn't be stood in front of his best friend's door, banging on it incessantly and threatening to break it down if he didn't open up.   
  
It was four months since Janus' last shed, meaning his next one would be right around the corner. As suspected, Janus hadn't come out of his room for the whole day. He'd had locked himself away, resolving to deal with the shed himself.   
  
Just like he always did.   
  
Usually, Remus would worm his way in somehow. Keep his eyes peeled, looking out for any signs Janus was starting his shed soon. Then, the second Janus seemed a little more sluggish than normal, Remus pounced like a feral dog with rabies, making his friend cups of tea, offering cuddles (gentle ones, Janus was always a bit sensitive after shedding) warming up as many towels as he could, always having tissue boxes on hand along with numerous tubs of (non-disgusting flavoured) ice cream, because, though he'd never tell Janus to his face, the Side did have a tendency to get more... _emotional_ during his shed.   
  
But the one thing Remus could never do, _would_ never do, was take Janus' skin off for him. That was Virgil's job.   
  
Well, before he left.   
  
"Jan, open the door! Please?" Remus had resorted to begging now. He'd been standing there for who-knows-how-long. He'd gone from asking, to demanding, to pleading, to begging, but had received no answer.   
  
_You never know_ , his mind supplied unhelpfully, _he could be dea-_   
  
No. No. Not thinking about that.   
  
"Janus, let me in! Janus!"   
  
Remus took a few steps back, before running at the door, slamming his shoulder into it as hard as he could. He heard a crunch, as his shoulder popped out of its socket, but still no answer from Janus. He slammed his shoulder against the wall, hard, shoulder popping right back into place, completely undeterred by the pain.   
  
Remus threw himself at the door, long fingernails scratching at the yellow paint. It flaked, and he knew Roman would scold him for ruining the paint job, but he couldn't bring himself to care.   
  
"Janus!" His voice was hoarse from all the shouting. "Please..."   
  
"Hey, woah!"   
  
Remus looked up to see Virgil, who'd nearly tripped over him in the hallway.   
  
"Rem, what's going on?"   
  
Remus looked up at Virgil, vision blurring with the threat of tears.   
  
"He hasn't answered me, Virgie. He hasn't answered..." Remus trailed off, lip trembling.   
  
"Whoa, calm down, Rem. What's going on?" Virgil sat down next to him by the door. He pulled Remus close, in a one-armed hug.   
  
"He's shedding. He shedding and he's in there all alone. He's gonna hurt himself," Remus let tears dribble down his face silently.   
  
Virgil swore under his breath, yanking his phone out of his hoodie pocket.   
  
"You have the master key?"   
  
Remus nodded, pointing across the hall. There was a key buried deep in the wall opposite.   
  
"Tried it, but when our rooms moved, the locks changed. It doesn't work up here, the locks you guys have are slightly different."   
  
Virgil nodded silently, going back to his phone. Remus watched as he navigated past various apps, finally coming to the calendar. When he opened it, to Remus' surprise, the whole month was highlighted in yellow, the top tab holding a single note.   
  
'JANUS SHED TIME'   
  
Remus looked at Virgil in shock.   
"Y-you kept doing it?"   
  
Virgil glanced away, cheeks dusted red.   
"I-I mean, yeah. Needed to make sure you didn't accidentally kill him."   
  
Remus gave a weak giggle at that. Then his face fell. Virgil didn't seem to notice the change in mood, tapping away on his phone, most likely noting the date of Janus' shed this time around.   
  
"So, you knew? The whole time?"   
  
Virgil still didn't look up.   
"Yeah, Rem, I thought we just established that." He said, tone amused.   
  
"...and you never came?"

Virgil's head snapped up, and he stared at Remus in horror.   
  
"Rem, I didn't mean-"   
  
"You never came back to help?"   
  
"I knew you'd have it handled!"   
  
"You just said yourself that I could've killed him!"   
  
Virgil took a long breath.   
" Rem, I-"   
  
"You didn't come back, Virgil! Why didn't you-"   
  
"I did!"   
  
Remus stopped, meeting eyes with Virgil. He Side's face was red and there were tears shining in his eyes.   
  
"I did come back," his voice was barely above a whisper. "Late, really late, one night. I snuck out of my room and I came down to see you both. Found you curled up with Jan on the couch, Jungle Book playing in the background. Most of his shed was on the floor, and you both had a billion tubs of ice cream next to you on the couch." Virgil wiped the tears from his eyes.   
  
"You had it handled, Rem, you did. Jan was happy, you were happy, and I didn't think you'd want me back. So I left. I went back to the Lights, and I let you have your happiness." 

Remus didn't reply, placing his ear against the door and knocking firmly. Both he and Virgil waited for a response.   
  
A response they didn't receive.   
  
Remus was at a loss.   
  
"What do we do, Virgie? If we don't get in there, he's gonna hurt himself."   
  
_He could die_ , went unsaid.   
  
Virgil stood up, offering Remus a hand. His expression was resolute, more determined than Remus had seen it for a while. But there was an undercurrent of worry, so hidden that it was almost non-existent.   
  
"We do the only thing we can," when Remus still hadn't taken Virgil's hand, the Side gently grabbed his wrist, pulling him up.   
  
"We yell louder."   
  
\-   
  
Roman opened his door, instantly assaulted with the sound of desperate shouting. He sounded the corner, met with the sight of his twin and Virgil, screaming and pounding on the final door in the hallway.   
  
Janus' door.   
  
He picked up the pace, slowing to a stop just before he smacked into Virgil. Neither Side seemed to register his presence, continuing to slam their hands frantically on Janus' door.   
  
"What is going on here?"   
  
Virgil stopped, turning around to face Roman. His face was flushed from the effort, eyeshadow darker than usual.   
  
"Princey, you have your sword on you?"   
  
Roman raised an eyebrow, perplexed, but unsheathed it nonetheless.   
  
"Good," Virgil shoved Remus out of the way, before taking a few steps back himself. "Now, stab that door."   
  
"What, why?" Roman's voice was pitched high in confusion. "What's happening?"   
  
Remus rolled his eyes, but Roman couldn't help but notice there was a sense of urgency in his posture.   
  
"Just do it, Romano."   
  
Roman vanished his sword, staring them both down stubbornly.   
  
"No, I want to know what's going on!"   
  
Virgil sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.   
  
"Janus is shedding, and he'll hurt himself if we let him go through it alone. We've been here for a while, trying to get him to open up, but he won't, Princey. He won't open the door!" Virgil smacked his hand weakly against the offending yellow door. "H-he could..." Virgil trailed off, but Roman got the message loud and clear. 

He swallowed, unsheathing his sword again, heart thudding painfully in his chest. Wordlessly, he gestured for Virgil and Remus to take a few more steps back, pointing the tip of his sword at the lock. He took a deep breath, readying himself.   
  
Three... two-   
  
A quiet whimper sounded from the other side of the door. Roman dropped his sword abruptly, launching himself at the door, Virgil and Remus not far behind.   
  
He placed his ear against the door, straining to listen.   
  
"Janus?"   
  
There was quiet for several minutes (seconds?). 

Another, barely audible, whimper. Right beside where the lock would be. Roman turned around, pacing the corridor.   
  
"Now I can't even stab the lock," he fumed, not angry at Janus or the others, but at himself, for not questioning sooner why the Side hadn't left his room. "Sounds like his head is right by it."   
  
"We'd end up skewering his brain," Remus muttered, hands travelling upwards to grip his hair. He slumped against a wall, not far away from Roman. "We can't shish kebab Janny's head."   
  
Roman couldn't even scold him for having an overactive imagination. It was true.   
  
Virgil rested his forehead against the door.   
  
"Jan?" Roman heard him whisper. "Jan, if you can hear us, do something. Hit the door, whine, cry, anything. I need to know you're ok."   
  
There was silence. Or, at least, Roman thought there was, but he was quickly disproven when Virgil turned around to stare at him and Remus, eyes wide and brimming with horror. Roman was sure his heart stopped at the words that came out of his mouth.   
  
"He's little."   
  
\-   
  
Logan heard a dull thump as he exited the Common Room, cup of coffee in hand. He raised an eyebrow, following the noise.   
  
Roman, Remus and Virgil were gathered in the hall, right by Janus' room. Virgil had his head leaning against the door, looking completely and utterly lost. If Logan wasn't mistaken, there were tears in his eyes.   
  
Remus was slumped against the wall, face buried in his knees. His defeated posture was strange, wrong, for someone who was usually filled with boundless energy.   
  
Roman was facing the wall, taking deep, measured breaths, eyes closed. There was a small crater in the plaster, and Roman's right fist was clenched.   
  
Ah.   
  
"Any reason you felt the need to punch a wall, Roman? Had it wronged you in any way?" Logan asked smoothly, taking a sip from his coffee cup.   
  
Roman turned to face him, eyes ablaze.   
  
"Janus is in there, Specs," his voice came out as a low growl, and he pointed toward the yellow door.   
  
"I see," Logan said patiently. "Is this new information to you? That is Janus' room. It should not come as a surprise that it is where he is currently residing."   
  
"No," came Virgil's voice, low and distorted, filling the entire Mindpalace. "He's shedding, Logan, and he's in there all by himself."   
  
Logan still didn't quite understand the urgency.   
  
"Yes, and?"   
  
"And he's little, nerd," Remus muttered, looking up. "He's in there all alone, which he shouldn't have been in the first place, and now he's little. He won't be able to cope by himself." 

Oh. Oh dear.   
  
Logan tried not to let his eyes widen too much, calmly vanishing his coffee cup, before striding towards the door. There was a new feeling curling in his stomach, and he didn't like it. It wasn't unlike how Virgil described worry. He caught sight of Roman's sword, lying discarded on the floor. 

"Have you tried brute force?" Logan eyed the lock on the door. 

Virgil pursed his lips.  
"We we're going to, but Jan's head is right by the lock. We could end up hurting him."   
  
"Remus mentioned having a master key-"   
  
Remus, without a word, pointed at the wall, where a key was buried. Logan nodded gravely.   
  
"I see," he motioned toward where Virgil was leaning. "May I?"   
  
Virgil looked reluctant, but after a few moments of deliberation, moved away from his place by the door. Logan took it, placing his ear gently against the wood.   
  
"Janus, little one?" He called softly.   
  
There was a whine from the other side, which Logan did not like at all, but it was proof he was still conscious.   
  
"Could you unlock the door for us, please?"   
  
Virgil shifted, pressing his ear to the door as well. They all waited.   
  
"C-can't," came the quiet whimper.   
  
Good. He was coherent enough to comprehend what was being said.   
  
"And why not, darling?" The name felt so foreign but so _right_ on his tongue.   
  
"Don't know how..."   
  
That wasn't good. If they couldn't open it from the outside, and he couldn't open it from the inside. Logan was at a loss as to what to do. He glanced back at Roman's sword.   
  
"Could you move away from the door, Janus?"   
  
"Can't move..."   
  
There was quiet, and Logan went to speak again, when,   
  
"'M scared, Logie. It hurts..."   
  
Logan didn't know what to do with that information.   
  
Virgil pushed him completely out of the way, cupping his hands over his mouth and pressing himself closer to the door. 

"We're gonna get to you, Jan, don't you worry. We're gonna help, it's ok."   
  
Logan decidedly did not comment on the tremors in his voice.   
  
He slumped against the door beside Virgil. Roman eyed him warily.   
  
"Specs? What do we do?"   
  
Logan sighed.   
"I don't know."   
  
The prince's eyes widened in disbelief.   
  
"What's that supposed to mean?"   
  
Logan surged up, nearly knocking into Virgil. He strode forwards until he was nearly chest to chest with Roman.   
  
"It means, _I don't know,_ Roman! What did you expect? That I'd magically be able to fix the situation with knowledge?" Logan did his fingernails into his palms. "I tried the only other logical solution, and I failed, Roman, I failed! So, yes, I don't know what to d-"   
  
"What's going on here, kiddos?" 

\-   
  
The Mindscape was quiet.   
  
Too quiet.   
  
Patton walked through the hallway, searching for his kiddos.   
  
Common Room? Empty.   
  
Logan's room? Empty. 

Roman's room? Empty.   
  
Virgil's room? Empty.   
  
Patton headed further down the hall, intending to check Remus' room, when-   
  
"It means I don't know, Roman!"   
  
That was Logan's voice. And he sounded angry. Patton followed the shout in the same direction he'd been going previously.   
  
The sound of the shouts got louder, and Patton walked faster. He needed to keep this situation, whatever it was, from escalating. He knew how Logan got when he was mad. And if he was still talking to Roman, then it certainly wouldn't end well.   
  
"What did you expect, that I'd magically be able to fix the situation with knowledge?"   
  
Patton was running now. He turned the corner, catching sight of the others. Logan and Roman were stood in the middle of the hallway, chest to chest, glaring at each other. Virgil and Remus looked on, one worried, and the other with an uncharacteristically exhausted look in his eyes. Despite only having entered the situation a few seconds prior, Patton was instantly hit with the suffocating tension.   
  
"What's going on here, kiddos?" Patton asked, hoping to disperse some of the negative feelings.   
  
He only succeeded in accentuating them.   
  
Virgil looked up. His eyes were bloodshot, and his eyeshadow was darker than Patton had ever seen it before.   
  
"Janus is stuck in there," he said, voice low and packed with worry. "He's shedding and we think he's hurt. We've tried everything." 

Patton looked thoughtfully at the lock.   
"Have you tried picking it?"   
  
Logan raised an eyebrow.   
"I'm afraid I don't understand, Patton. Have we tried picking what?"   
  
"The lock."   
  
Logan looked at him incredulously.   
"As far as I'm aware, none of us possess that skill."   
  
"Well, it's a good thing I do, then."   
  
Patton produced a pin from behind his back, giving Virgil a soft smile.   
  
"I just need to get past a second, kiddo,"   
  
Virgil nodded, standing up and letting him through.   
"Be careful, Pat. Jan's leaning against the door, we think."   
  
Patton paused.   
"Well, in that case, someone get ready to catch him."   
  
Virgil nodded, kneeling a little ways off, arms out and ready to catch Janus. Patton crouched by the door, placing his ear on it carefully. He inserted the pin in the lock, listening for the right clicks.   
  
"Who knew," Remus muttered, having risen from his spot on the floor in favour of watching Patton. "The puffball can pick locks."   
  
Patton ignored him, concentrating on manouvering the pin back and forth as necessary. The lock clicked and clanged for around five minutes, before finally giving way to Patton's expertise. He stepped back, vanishing the pin, one hand on the doorknob. He glanced back at Virgil, meeting eyes with the Side for a split second. He then kneeled down again, speaking quietly through the door.   
  
"Janus? We've managed to open the door now. Get ready, sweetheart." 

Patton didn't receive a response, but he wasn't expecting one. He turned the doorknob slowly.   
  
The door was nudged slightly, as a weight fell from behind it. Virgil surged forward, catching Janus in his arms. Patton opened the door fully. His hand flew up to cover his mouth, as he heard various sounds of horror and disbelief from the others. All he could see was red. 

"Oh, my..." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Patton can now pick locks, because I said so.


	7. FamILY (pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The warmth was seeping through his hoodie. He held tighter.
> 
> The air was thick with the scent of blood.
> 
> Janus' face was deathly pale, and his breaths came out as quiet gasps. The hands gave up on trying to take him away, and had now resorted to turning him over gently in Virgil's grip. Virgil let them.
> 
> He wished he hadn't.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. This chapter is long. I'm sorry, it took me a week to update this, but the situation escalated so much more than I'd meant it to and I felt like one of my usual 1,000 word chapters wouldn't have done it justice. So here you go, have a 5,000 word chapter instead. 
> 
> Warnings:  
> \- I cannot stress enough that there are multiple descriptions of blood and injury, some of which get quite gruesome.  
> \- grotesque imagery  
> \- crying  
> \- indirect mentions of death  
> \- partial nudity (in a completely not sexual context, no funny business here, nope. Janus just gets a bath) 
> 
> I think that's all, but let me know if I've missed anything.

Virgil's hands were slick with blood.  
  
_Bloodbloodbloodbloodbloodbloodblood_  
  
Janus' blood.  
  
He was bleeding, bleeding heavily.  
  
_Bleedingbleedingbleedingbleedingbleedingbleeding_  
  
Virgil felt a hand on his back, and flinched violently. Someone was easing his grip around Janus and- _nononononono they were taking him away-_  
  
"Hey, hey, calm down, Dark and Stormy. He's fine, he's fine, let go..."  
  
The warmth was seeping through his hoodie. He held tighter.  
  
The air was thick with the scent of blood.  
  
Janus' face was deathly pale, and his breaths came out as quiet gasps. The hands gave up on trying to take him away, and had now resorted to turning him over gently in Virgil's grip. Virgil let them.

He wished he hadn't.  
  
Janus was only wearing sweatpants, so it was easy to see where the blood was from. Most of the shed was gone, but there was a patch near Janus' shoulder that didn't look quite ready yet.  
  
It had been peeled off anyway.  
  
The skin was hanging off Janus' back in a large, blood-soaked sheet, revealing red, raw flesh underneath. There were small craters where scales had been ripped off along with flesh.  
  
Someone was cursing loudly behind him, but it was muffled by the sound of the blood roaring in his ears. He shouldn't have left. If he hadn't left then Janus wouldn't have tried doing this by himself, and if he hadn't tried doing it by himself, then they wouldn't be in this situation. It was his fault.  
  
His fault. His fault. His fault. His fault.  
  
Hisfaulthisfaulthisfaulthisfaulthisfaulthi-  
  
"Virgil, I implore you to breathe."  
  
There was another hand on his back, a different one, and someone pulled Janus from his arms, successfully, this time. He turned around, flinging his arms around the first person within reach. They stiffened, but Virgil didn't care, holding tighter and muffling his sobs in their shoulder. They relaxed, eventually, pressing a firm hand between his shoulder blades and another cradled his head gently.  
  
"This isn't your fault."  
  
Virgil shook his head vehemently.  
  
He was pulled away from the warm body for a second, and was forced to meet eyes with Logan.  
  
"It _isn't_ ," he repeated, soft but assertive.  
  
Virgil didn't agree, but nodded his head anyway. He couldn't make this about him. Janus was the hurt one.  
  
He took a steadying breath, jaw set in determination. He'd made a mistake, but now he was going to help when he had the chance.  
  
"I'm running a bath, Pat," he told the Moral Side, not waiting for a response before entering Janus' room, stepping over the pool of blood by the door and trying his hardest not to lose his lunch.  
  
"Lukewarm water, kiddo!" Patton called after him. "Don't make it too hot."  
  
Virgil nodded, though Patton couldn't see him, and set about readying the bath, turning the water on, before gathering as many towels as he could and stacking them on the closed toilet lid.  
  
There was a quiet knock at the door as Virgil was rooting through Janus' bathroom cabinets, on a hunt for bandages.  
  
"Come in?" He called, after a second, confused as to why the person was knocking anyway.  
  
The door creaked open, and Roman poked his head in.  
  
"Can I stay in here for a while?" He asked, swallowing hard. His eyes were puffy and shining with tears.  
  
Virgil nodded wordlessly, not pausing his search for bandages. After rummaging through various cabinets, he emerged victorious, holding up the bandages in triumph. He turned around to place them with the towels, only to find that Roman had moved them, taking the closed toilet lid for himself. He opened his mouth, ready to tease Roman about being an old man for not being able to stay standing, when a shaky sob interrupted him.  
  
"He's going to be ok, right Virgil?"  
  
Virgil opened his mouth to respond, to reassure, but the words caught in his throat. Roman didn't seem to like the silence.  
  
"It's bad, isn't it? It's really bad..."  
  
Virgil could only bring himself to nod.  
  
"I've hurt myself so many times, and Logan has patched me up so many times without even raising so much as an eyebrow, but you should've seen him, Virge. He was nearly crying, _Lo_ was nearly crying," Roman's breath stuttered, and he reached up to wipe the tears from his cheeks. More fell.  
  
Virgil wanted to walk over, hug Roman, do something, say something, _anything_ , but his feet stayed firmly rooted to the spot, mouth stubbornly closed. Roman seemed to grow more uneasy at his silence.  
  
"There was so much blood, Virge. It wasn't just the floor, it was on his bed too. It was everywhere!"  
  
Virgil's mouth finally unglued itself, and he willed the panic away.  
  
"He'll be ok, Princey." He bit back a laugh at the role reversal. It was Roman comforting _him_ like this, not even a month ago. Lying to his face.  
  
Roman didn't look up.  
"Will he?"  
  
Virgil didn't know.  
  
-  
  
Remus couldn't take his eyes off it. The large chunk of skin was hanging off Janus, and Remus could just take his hands and _tug it_ , and he'd be able to skin Janus alive, pull off all his skin in one go. He could even imagine the sound; a peeling sound, like shell being separated from a boiled egg, like tape being pulled fro-  
  
"-mus? Remus, you with us, kiddo?"  
  
Remus blinked, eyes coming to rest on Patton. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Logan watching him. Remus forced a grin, though it made his face feel weird, like a rubber band stretched far too thin.

"Yeah, Krabby Patty? Did you need something?" He asked.  
  
Patton swallowed, and Remus' eyes wandered down to where he was pressing a fluffy pastel blue towel to Janus' back, no doubt one of his own.  
  
"I was asking you if you could press down over there," he said, gesturing with his head at an uncovered spot. "Me and Lo have covered as much as we can, but we only have so many hands..."  
  
Remus nodded mutely. He summoned his tentacles, using four to gently nudge away Logan and Patton's hands, then a further two to summon his own towel - a lime green one - to staunch the blood near the middle of Janus' back.  
  
"You two have been doing this for far too long," he said in an uncharacteristic fit of solemnity. "Let me for a while."  
  
Neither could reply to that, it seemed. There was silence for some time - Remus wasn't sure how long - before Logan spoke up.  
  
"It would be advisable to change to towels now," he said quietly, lacking his usual air of self-assurance.  
  
He reached out to gently take a towel from Remus' tentacle, eyes widening - most likely at the feeling of the slime coating the expanse of the appendage.  
  
"Fascinating," he whispered in a moment of unchecked awe, before blinking and clearing his throat in embarrassment.  
  
Remus chuckled, despite the situation, and pulled the towel off Janus' back for Logan. The Logical Side examined the exposed section of the wound.  
  
"The bleeding seems to have stopped here," he said, cheeks still burning from moments earlier. "Would you mind removing that other towel?"  
  
Remus complied, almost grimacing at the resistance the dried blood gave as the towel was peeled away. He peered at the raw flesh.  
  
"Stopped here too,"  
  
Patton nodded, pointing at the final towel.  
"What about that one?"  
  
Logan stopped him as Remus was about to remove the third towel, placing a hand over one of Remus' tentacles. The Duke tried not to giggle at the feeling.  
  
"We must observe caution," he said. "That was where the wound was deepest. It may not have clotted yet."  
  
Remus nodded.  
"Ok, I'll be careful. Take it off, or no?"  
  
Logan hesitated, then slowly removed his hand from the tentacle. Remus found himself missing the touch.  
  
"You may remove it," he said. "But remember what I said."  
  
Remus peeled the towel away slowly, holding his breath. Patton squealed.  
  
"It's stopped! It's stopped!" The relief in his voice was contagious.  
  
Logan sagged, allayed by the lack of blood. Remus snapped his fingers, vanishing the blood soaked towels.  
  
"What do we do now?"  
  
Logan's face darkened, and Patton eyed him warily.  
  
"Lo, I don't like the look on your face..."  
  
The Logical Side leaned closer, ghosting a hand over the surface of the skin flap. Patton paled.  
  
"We're not..."  
  
Logan nodded gravely.  
"We need to cut it off."  
  
-

The bitter tang of vomit filled Patton's mouth at those words.

They would need to cut it off. Cut off Janus' _skin._  
  
"Lo, we can't..." He started, unsure of what he was going to say.  
  
Logan rubbed a hand across his face, sighing in exasperation.  
  
"What else do you suggest we do, Patton? It's the only way."  
  
"But it's his _skin_ , Logan. We're cutting off his skin! It's a part of him, it feels wrong. Can't we just leave it-"  
  
"If we leave it, it will get worse!" Logan's voice was rising, fast. "We won't be able to wrap the wound properly, and we'd end up hurting him more! Is that what you want, Patton? Is that what you-"  
  
Logan was cut off by a whimper.  
  
Remus glared, gently stroking Janus' hair, attempting to soothe him back to sleep.  
  
"Now look what you've done, Nerdy Wolverine," he hissed. "He's waking, and if we're going to have to cut the skin off, he might be awake through all of it! What's that going to he like for him, you cutting off his _skin_ while he has to lay here and take it!"  
  
Logan sighed again, suddenly looking exhausted. Patton pursed his lips, guilt curling in his chest. This was indirectly his fault, after all.  
  
"How about we all stop shouting," he said, after a second. "We don't need to scare Janus anymore than we already are."  
  
He shifted to face Logan, summoning a pair of craft scissors from his room. He held them out to Logan with trembling hands.  
  
"Will these be ok?"  
  
Logan took them, examining the blades carefully.  
  
"Are they sharp?"  
  
"Fabric scissors. They're as sharp as you can get."  
  
Logan nodded.  
"Then they shall suffice," he paused, looking at Patton with the softest expression the Moral Side had ever seen on him, sans when he was interacting with Little Janus.  
  
"Thank you, Patton."  
  
Patton's cheeks burned. Logan shuffled closer to Janus, picking up the skin and holding the scissors to it, ready to cut.  
  
The mewl startled them all.  
  
Remus cursed under his breath, and Patton couldn't even bring himself to scold the Duke. Logan was completely frozen, scissors hanging limply in the air.

For a moment, no one breathed.  
  
There was another soft noise, and Patton was broken out of his trance. He crouched closer to Janus' head, laying his cheek on the floor. Scared, heterochromatic eyes met his own.  
  
"Wha' happenin', Pat-Pat?" He asked, voice wobbling.  
  
"Nothing's happening, baby!" Patton was quick to assure. "Nothing's going on!"  
  
Janus' face scrunched up as if there was a sour taste in his mouth. There was, Patton realised, with growing apprehension. The taste of his lies.  
  
"Lyin', Pat-Pat," he whispered. "Somethin's happenin'."  
  
Patton looked helplessly to the others.  
  
"Tell him the truth," Logan whispered. Remus hummed in agreement, eyes sad.  
  
Patton nodded, lying back on the floor.  
  
"You hurt yourself real bad, sweetheart," Patton whispered, ignoring ever instinct to soften or sugar-coat. "You scared us all, and now we're trying to help you out, ok?"  
  
Janus' eyes widened as if he was just now registering the pain. His face crumpled. Patton took a deep breath, heart pounding painfully.  
  
"Lo's gotta-" Patton nearly choked on the words. "Lo's gotta cut off some skin, alright?"  
  
Janus' expression grew panicked, and one of his hands flew out, trying desperately to feel behind him. Remus caught it before he could touch anything. The resulting whine shattered Patton's heart.  
  
His other hand was thrown out too. Patton caught that one.  
  
"Please, Jan," he begged. "Let us do this. It'll hurt less if we get it done."  
  
But Janus was having none of it. In a split second, he'd summoned his remaining four arms, the extra appendages flailing in his panic.  
  
Remus caught two with his tentacles before they could get anywhere near Logan. Patton caught a third that smacked him in the knee.

"Janus, I'm sorry," Remus was crying, tears streaking his eyeshadow. "We have to do it, Jan. We have to."  
  
Janus was crying out now, pupils blown wide in panic. His final hand was being waved erratically. Virgil and Roman burst out of the bathroom. They surveyed the situation, before running over, Virgil sliding Janus' head into his lap, Roman catching the final hand before it could hit Logan.  
  
"Lo, do it!" Patton pleaded. "Do it now!"  
  
Logan didn't need to be told twice, taking the scissors and cutting.  
  
The next minutes were agonising. Virgil was running his hands through Janus' hair, and the others were stroking his hands in what they hoped was a soothing manner. There wasn't a dry eye in the group. They all sat in silence, listening to Janus' cries of anguish. What had started off as pleas and begging soon dissolved into incoherent screams as Logan neared the deeper part of the wound.  
  
After what felt like forever, Logan pulled away, holding the sheet of skin in his hand. He vanished it and the scissors, and Patton made a mental note to never use those again.  
  
Virgil stroked Janus' cheek.  
"It's over. We're done, Jan, we're done with cutting," he whispered over and over again.  
  
They all released Janus' hands and they flopped to the floor weakly, the Side too tired to retract the extra four.  
  
Patton reached over, placing a hand in Janus' hair.  
"Good job, kiddo. You did good."

Janus hiccuped, sending them all a betrayed look.

"I-it hurt!" He whimpered.  
  
"We know, little one," Logan said gently. "I'm sorry."  
  
"What's the status with the bath, Virgie?" Asked Remus.  
  
All eyes shifted to the Anxious Side, whose eyes widened after a second. He gently shifted Janus' head off his lap, then sprinted to the bathroom, stringing together the weirdest curse words Patton had ever heard.  
  
"Did he just say... 'Holy macaroni muffins'?" Roman asked, voicing Patton's thoughts.  
  
Janus gave a wet giggle, wiping tears from his cheeks, but making no move to sit up.

"Vee silly!"  
  
"I heard that!"  
  
"Good, because it's true!" Roman called back, sending Janus into another fit of giggles.  
  
They all watched him fondly, waiting for the inevitable question...  
  
"What now?"  
  
There it was.  
  
"Now, you take a bath!" Roman said as cheerily as possible.  
  
Janus narrowed his eyes.  
"And?"  
  
Roman deflated, attempt at telling only half the truth ending in complete failure. Janus was too good.  
"....And we clean the wound."  
  
They watched as realisation dawned on Janus, and his face crumpled once more.  
  
Cutting wasn't the hard part. Cleaning was.   
  
-  
  
"No!"  
  
"Please, Jan-bear?" Roman begged for what felt like the fiftieth time.  
  
He'd shifted, taking Virgil's previous spot when Patton had gone to help Virgil with not accidentally flooding the bathroom. He gently stroked Janus' cheek, just as the other Side had been doing. Logan had moved up closer to Janus' head, taking one of the Side's hands and holding it, his face a mixture of guilt and apology. Remus was quiet.  
  
"Janny?" He said after a moment. "Remember when you hurt yourself, after the courtroom thing?"

Roman blinked, raising an eyebrow at his twin. Janus had hurt himself after the courtroom situation? Remus ignored him in favour of continuing with whatever point he was trying to make. Janus gave an affirmative hum, confirming that he indeed had injured himself after the courtroom scenario.  
  
"Remember how you sat on the counter, and I had to take out all those icky white bits from your hand, so you wouldn't get sick?"  
  
Another hum.  
  
"Well, sometimes you can't see the icky bits when you get hurt, but you have to clean it up, because they're still there. We're not trying to be mean, Jan-Jan. We just don't want you to get sick."  
  
Roman shared a glance with Logan, who wore a similar expression of surprise. Apparently he wasn't the only one who didn't know what was going on. Janus didn't reply for several moments, seemingly thinking over Remus' (surprisingly sensible) reasoning.  
  
"Ok," he said simply, after a minute's deliberation.  
  
Roman gave a relieved sigh, sliding his thigh from under Janus' head and picking him up, mindful of the large patch of raw flesh. He tucked Janus' head into his shoulder, before locking eyes with Remus.  
  
"We are talking about this later," he mouthed, gesturing to Janus.  
  
Remus rolled his eyes, but nodded after a beat of hesitation, standing up and yanking Logan to his feet. The Side stumbled, before regaining his balance and glaring at Remus, who shrugged, grinning.  
  
Roman shared an exasperated look with Janus, who'd lifted his head from Roman's shoulder to watch the exchange with tired eyes. He knocked on the bathroom door, before bumping it open with his hip. Instantly, he was enveloped with humid air and met with the sight of Virgil quietly conversing with Patton, the former of which was perched on the bathroom counter. Upon seeing them, Virgil broke off the conversation, flashing Janus a gentle smile. Despite the smile not being directed toward him, Roman couldn't help but mirror the expression.

"Hey, Jan."  
  
Janus grinned back shyly.  
  
"Hi, Vee."  
  
The tub, Roman realised, was now filled three quarters of the way with clear water. Judging by the lack of steam arising from the water, but the humidity of the room, he guessed it was lukewarm, as per Patton's earlier request.  
  
"Managed not to flood the bathroom too much, huh, Hot Topic?" Roman smirked, nodding at the, only mildly damp, tiled floor.  
  
Virgil blushed crimson, reaching around Janus to punch Roman's shoulder playfully.

"Shut up, Princey."  
  
"Actually, I did most of the work," Patton cut in, uncharacteristic teasing smirk stretched across his features.  
  
Roman glanced down at Janus, exaggerating his expression of mock surprise. Janus giggled.  
  
"See that? Vee could've flooded the _whole_ bathroom, if Pat didn't swoop in and save the day!"  
  
Virgil blushed darker than Roman thought was possible.  
"Be quiet, Princey, or I'll shove you in the bath!" He threatened, but the smile tugging at his lips ruined the effect.  
  
There was silence for a moment, as they all tried to contain their laughter, failing miserably. Virgil recovered first, gesturing with mild hesitance at the bathtub, as if he didn't want to ruin the happiness of the moment. Roman tried not to frown as he remembered exactly what the bath was for in the first place.  
  
"You ready to get in the bath, Jan-bear?" He asked.  
  
Janus' grip tightened and, for a second, Roman thought he would be faced with more heart breaking resistance. But the Side gave a resolute nod.  
  
"Ok, Ro."  
  
Roman made a mental note to thank his twin when this was over.  
  
"Can I change you into swim shorts, Jan?" He asked softly. Though the Side had been partially naked for the better part of an hour, and his pride had probably already been ripped to shreds, Roman still felt like he needed to keep Janus in control where possible, and that meant asking for permission.  
  
Janus nodded, visibly grateful at being asked first. Roman snapped his fingers ridding the Side of his sweats and replacing them with yellow swim shorts. He leaned over the bath, lowering Janus in.  
  
As soon as the wound hit the water, Janus' eyes widened, and he rushed to grab Roman's wrists.  
  
"H-hurts!" He gasped. "Ro, it hurts!"  
  
Roman bit his lip, avoiding Janus' panicked gaze as he twisted his wrists out of his vice-like grip. He placed his hands on the Side's shoulders, keeping him in the water.

"I'm sorry, baby," he whispered, tears springing to his eyes. "I'm so sorry." 

Virgil appeared beside him, holding a washcloth in his hand.  
  
"Jan, I gotta clean it now, ok?"  
  
Patton nudged Roman gently out of the way, obscuring his view of Janus as quiet sobs and whimpers filled the air. Roman wasn't sure if he was annoyed or thankful.  
  
Roman sat down on the closed toilet lid, dropping his head into his hands. Janus was crying, he was whimpering an whining, but he was ~~alive~~ awake, and Roman felt a weight lifted from his chest.  
  
Janus would be ok.  
  
-  
  
"I was unaware you had tentacles, Remus," Logan began awkwardly.  
  
He and Remus had been rudely exiled from the bathroom as Roman had kicked the door shut behind him without letting them in. Though Logan was mildly affronted, he and Remus were equally as worried about Janus as the other three, he could understand why it was necessary. It would be unwise to crowd a vulnerable Janus when it was unnecessary.  
  
So now he was left with Remus, awkwardly tidying Janus' room up for when the others were finished. In his initial panic, Logan had forgone surveying Janus' room, but now he could see how disorderly it was. It created the uncomfortable image in his mind of Janus frantically trying to stop the bleeding on his own, which left a sour taste in his mouth and an unpleasant feeling in his stomach.  
  
"Hmm, yeah," Remus hummed noncommitally, snapping his fingers and vanishing the pool of blood from the floor. "Had them forever, not very interesting."  
  
Logan couldn't help but gape at that.

"Not very interesting? Remus, you have _extra appendages!_ It is simply fascinating! There are so many questions to be asked! Why do you have tentacles, specifically? How many do you have? Do they require any additional maintenance? Are they more reminiscent of squid or octop-"  
  
Logan cut himself off, looking down at the floor in embarrassment. He'd started another one of his rants, asking invasive questions without even receiving permissio-  
  
"I have tentacles because I want to have tentacles," Logan turned to see the Duke looking at him, sincerity and endearment sparkling in his eyes.  
  
Logan had never received _that_ kind of response before.  
  
"I need something to make me different from my brother, and I liked the idea. Roman and I can change our appearance however we want, so I gave myself tentacles. I have eight, as far as I know. Like an octopus!" Remus began counting the questions off on his fingers. "I know it sounds strange, since I don't even look after the normal parts of my body, but I wash them in salt water once a week. Keeps them from drying out. And I think they're more like octopus tentacles than squid. Was that all of them?"  
  
Logan nodded mutely, swallowing hard. He'd never had anyone actually answer his questions. The more and more he asked, the more and more he felt like they were ignored or brushed off. Having them answered for once, made him feel strange, like a weight had been, figuratively, lifted from his chest.  
  
Like he wasn't a nuisance.  
  
He blinked, remembering exactly what they were doing before he'd gotten excited. Remus was a lot closer than before, now, and Logan was suddenly aware of their height difference. He turned away, busying himself with stripping the sheets off Janus' bed, when a snap of Remus' fingers interrupted him, changing the sheets and making the bed in a split second.  
  
That was when something occurred to him.  
  
"Why did you not just snap your fingers to clean the whole room? You could have saved a lot of time and effort, and it wouldn't have given me a chance to start talking." Logan said, confused.  
  
Remus smiled, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe this is exactly how I wanted it to go."  
  
Before Logan could form a coherent response to that comment, the bathroom door was opened again, and out stepped Roman, Virgil and Patton, who was carrying an asleep Janus. The little was wearing a new pair of sweatpants, but his top half was left bare, exposing the raw pink flesh on the left side of his back. The wound was now, thankfully, rid of most of the blood, giving Logan a clear idea of where to bandage. Remus removed his hand from Logan's shoulder, and he tried not to miss the warmth too much.  
  
"Nerd, think fast!"  
  
Logan was smacked in the face with a plastic package, which he belatedly realised was the pack of bandages.

Virgil, who'd thrown the bandages, hid a snicker behind his palm.

"You catch with your hands, Lo, not your face."  
  
Logan rolled his eyes, resisting the urge to throw it right back. He motioned for Patton to sit with Janus on the bed. The Moral Side did so, shifted Janus so that he was straggled in his lap, head tucked in his neck, back within Logan's reach. Logan turned to Roman.  
  
"May I have some gauze?"  
  
The prince nodded, snapping his fingers. Seconds later, enough gauze to cover Janus' entire body appeared on the bed.  
  
"The abundance was unnecessary, but thank you."  
  
Logan carefully arranged the gauze on Janus' back so that it wouldn't fall, before leaning closer in order to wrap the bandages around Janus' chest and shoulder. At last, after several minutes, he stood back.  
  
Janus' wound was completely covered, obscuring the raw flesh and pockets of blood from sight. Logan couldn't help but be relieved the blood was out of sight; what usually fascinated him unsettled him at that precise moment, for some reason.  
  
Patton attempted to untangle Janus from himself, but with no avail. The Side was sleeping deeply, arms firmly around Patton's waist. Eventually he sighed, manouvering himself to lay down with Janus in his arms.  
  
Logan ignored the growing feeling of... _something or the other_ in the pit of his stomach.  
  
-  
  
Janus woke to warmth.  
  
He hummed, snuggling closer to the warm body in front of him. A chuckle vibrated the chest he'd buried his face into.  
  
"You awake, kiddo?  
  
He whined, pressing the human side of his face further into the blue polo shirt. He was not ready to wake up, but the throbbing in his shoulder was too harsh to ignore. A few tears escaped his eyes, dampening the fabric beneath his head. His shoulder hurt, and his scales were feeling extremely sensitive.  
  
"Not feeling great, huh kiddo?"  
  
He whined again. He just wanted it all to go away!  
  
He was gently lifted into a sitting position against someone's chest, making him yelp as the wound was accidentally disturbed, along with his scales. He shivered at the sudden rush of cold air.  
  
"Rem, you still have that old shirt of mine?" Came a voice from above his head, sounding like Vee, but Janus didn't bother opening his eyes to confirm.  
  
"Yep!" Came the chipper reply, along with a snap of fingers, and Janus was suddenly enveloped in more warmth and the feeling of soft cotton barely brushing his sensitive scales.  
  
Janus finally opened his eyes, squinting at the light. Once they had adjusted, Janus identified the two people stood above as indeed being Vee and Ree. He looked around a little more, seeing that someone had altered the size of his bed so that they all had space to fit, Lo and Ro were sat next to Pat, who happened to be the one holding him.  
  
He pouted up at Vee and Ree, patting the space beside him.  
  
"Sit down," he ordered, pulling the sternest face he could.  
  
Vee laughed, but listened, pulling Remus down with him. He ruffled Janus' hair playfully.  
  
"You are such a bossy baby, you know that?"  
  
Janus responded with the utmost maturity, by sticking his tongue out. Vee laughed again, then produced a glass of water and a spoon full of purple goopy (ew) stuff from behind his back like a magician.  
  
"You gotta take this, Jan. It'll make some of the hurt go away."  
  
Janus pulled a face, turning away.  
  
"No." He said resolutely.  
  
"How about..." Ro started, pulling a funny thinking face. "We have Remus test it to see if it tastes good?"

Janus thought for a moment, before nodding. Ree made a disgusted face just like he did, moments before.  
  
"Ew, there is no way you can make me-"  
  
Vee shoved the spoon in his mouth. Ree made another funny face (how was he so good at those?) that made him look like he'd just eaten a lemon. Janus clapped his hands in delight, laughing at Ree. Occupied with his giggling fit, he didn't see the other spoonful until it was shoved into his mouth. He swallowed the gross liquid on instinct, squinting his eyes and scrunching his nose.  
  
"Das really bad," he said, sticking his tongue out. He heard someone snicker.

Vee held the glass of water to his mouth, tilting it so that he could drink slowly. Once he seemed satisfied with the water Janus drank, he pulled the glass away, setting it on the nightstand. Janus whined, making grabby hands towards him. He wanted to cuddle with Vee, Vee gave some of the best cuddles (second to only Ree, because his cuddles were the bestest).  
  
He was lifted away from Pat onto Vee's lap, and he turned, burying his face in his shoulder. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ro conjure his laptop.  
  
"Want to watch a movie, sweetie?" He asked. "It'll take your mind off the hurt for a little bit."  
  
Janus nodded shyly.  
  
"We watch Jungle Book?" He requested.  
  
Ro smiled, doing the magic thingy with his fingers to put the movie on, whilst also switching off the lights and covering them all in a large blanket. Janus felt Vee pull him closer, and he leaned into the Side's chest, a feeling of warmth blossoming in his own. He liked it here, he decided.  
  
Because here was a place where he was safe, happy, and loved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed that! 
> 
> Just before I disappear into my dark lair to concoct more stories for this universe, I just want to know everyone's standpoint on romance as a part of this series. The next idea I was going to write has a plot centred around romance (not with Janus, though) and I wondered if anyone would actually read that or not. It's not angsty (says me, who manages to incorporate angst into anything), just a sweet little idea that won't get out of my head. 
> 
> Anyway, that's a cap on my little ramble. Hope you wonderful people have a wonderful day! <3

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are always appreciated, I'd love to know what you're thinking! 
> 
> Take care of yourselves! <3


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